Project Disney- Sleeping Beauty

I am participating in Project Disney hosted by Picture Me Reading!  Go to her blog to learn more about it!

Project Disney: The plan is to tackle all of the Disney films, re-reading the classic stories and tales that inspired many of them and to look at how the changes the filmmakers made, the new elements they introduced and the essential elements they kept. We will, of course, be talking about the films as movies as well, saying why we enjoy them and what some of our favorite moments are, but our focus will be on looking at them as adaptations. For the films that are not drawn from any one work we’ll be looking at some of the possible literary influences that we see in the stories.

This week we are talking all about Maleficent.. oh I mean Sleeping Beauty.  This movie is based off the book "The Sleeping Beauty  by Charles Perrault or "Little Briar Rose"by the Brothers Grimm. This is my second favorite Disney movie behind Cinderella.  I love this movie.. the art, the story, the evil, the good, the everything!  One of the best.  First I'll compare the stories to the movie.

The movie is basically based off the Perrault story.  Though in his story there are 7 fairies who show up for Aurora's birthday party and one that was left out because she was thought to be dead or missing. This fairy then curses Aurora to prick her finger on a spinning wheel .. and DIE!  Did you just say that in your head in Maleficent's voice?  Because I know I did!

Anywho... also Aurora is not taken away to live with fairies.  She stays in the castle and one day the king and queen go out and she happens to try out a spinning wheel and pricks her finger.  A fairy comes and realizes that the princess will wake with no one there so she puts the whole castle to sleep and covers the outside with thorny bushes. (In Grimm's version there is only the Queen and she dies because she is so worried about her daughter after she pricks her finger.  ) A prince discovers the castle and sees the princess who wakes up after 100 years at that moment (he does not kiss her) and she was in love!

So the prince and the princess marry and have two children.  He becomes King and then must go off to war and put his mother on the throne as regent.  While she was ruling she wanted to eat both of the prince and Aurora's children!  (Yes this is not only in the Grimm version). The servant who was supposed to feed her the children hides them and feeds her something else instead.  The prince's mother discovers this and then tries to throw Aurora and her children in a huge pot to cook but the prince comes into the courtyard when it is about to happen and then his mother throws herself in instead.

Many differences from the original Sleeping Beauty story compared to the Disney version.   There are many characters missing. Maleficent who is probably a representation of the prince's mother.  The three fairies Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather.  I love these characters.  Disney has made an AMAZING villain in this movie.  I would have to say the TOP villain.  Yes I said it! I wish Disney movies still had villains like her.  She was like true evil....  her minions... her castle... turning into a DRAGON.. and wanting to murder Aurora.  Really you just don't see that anymore.

I also love the whole pink/blue dress changing!  Genius!  And the music in the movie... beautiful!  The scenery in the movie is breath taking as well.  Walt Disney used artist  Eyvind Earle for drawing the background images in the film.  I would love to own some of these pieces and hand them in my home!

 
And for those of you who have been following my Project Disney posts you know I love Annie Leibovitz photos for the Disney campaign!  If you haven't seen them all google them and check them out! David Beckham as Prince Charming??  Yes please!!

Well I do think Sleeping Beauty is really a good movie.  A little dated yes.. but the artwork is classic and the characters are really amazing.  Aurora is not my favorite princess.. but she loves nature and life and is innocent.  What do you think of this film?

Here are my other Project Disney:
Cinderella
Peter Pan
Treasure Planet
Snow White
The Great Mouse Detective
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Princess and the Frog
Pinocchio 
Fantasia 
Beauty and the Beast
Lady and the Tramp
Alice in Wonderland
The Rescuers
The Rescuers Down Under
Please check out Picture Me Reading's post on Sleeping Beauty!

Favorite Fictional Character-Halloween Edition

Favorite Fictional Character is a meme started by Ryan at Wordsmithonia he started my Favorite Fictional Character posts out of love for some of the greatest characters ever dreamed up, some of which never get the recognition they deserve. They have all moved, inspired, taught, or in one way or another shaped his thought process and my taste. It's because of these characters that he loves to get lost in a good book, be enthralled by a movie or TV show, or be moved by a poem or song. They all mean something to him and from what he's seen he's not alone in that.

I visit Wordsmithsonia every Wednesday to see what fun new character pops up! My favorite time of year is Halloween!!  And Wordsmithsonia does a special for Halloween!!

This week... since it is the last week of this meme for Halloween I am going to pick Maleficent.  What a magnificent villain.  Best villain from all the Disney movies.  Her scenes in Disney are some of the darkest out of all Disney villains.  You won't see evil characters like that in Disney anymore.  Too many parents would complain now-a-days.

This character is just the coolest ... I mean she turns into a DRAGON! 

She goes up against fairy's and has no shame to curse the Princess Aurora just because she wasn't invited to a party!  To quote her : "You poor simple fools, thinking you could defeat me. Me, the mistress of all evil."  There is no way to tell if she really has horns covered up or if her headpiece is just made out of cloth.  she can shape shift, shoot lighting, and teleporting.  She is also one of the best villains in the Kingdom Hearts video game series (which I wish would stop being only made for the DS).

She has always been my favorite villain.. even though Cinderella is my favorite Disney movie with Sleeping Beauty coming in second.  It is probably the generation I grew up in where these movies were so popular.  Now people want something different then the traditional Disney movie plots.  They want more action and less story.

 

I am also really happy about there being a movie about Maleficent!  Starring Angelina Jolie.  Who I think will be bad ass at the role! I don't know much about the movie yet except it is told from Maleficent's perspective.  Maybe it will be like the book/Broadway musical Wicked which I also love! 

 

 How can you not love this villain???